Mass Effect 3: CONSEQUENCES
by JediFan421
Summary: My version of what would happen as a result of the Destroy ending of Mass Effect 3. **SPOILERS FOR MASS EFFECT 3 ABOUND**


**Note: This is not a changing of the endings that BioWare and EA decided for Mass Effect 3 but is what would logically happen as a result of one. It fills in the tremendous logical errors, plot holes and continuity mistakes and shows what Commander Shepard and his friends, lover(s) and allies would be logically doing after the end of the game if Shepard destroys all synthetic life and survives. This Shepard is also a Paragon Male Shepard, meaning every squad mate from 1 except for Kaidan survives and every squad mate and crew member from 2 except for Mordin, Thane and Legion survive and every person who died in Mass Effect 1, 2 and 3 who died regardless of choice is still dead.**

**CONSEQUENCES **

*GASP* Shepard's eyes flashed open, precious oxygen rushing back into his body, blood beginning to flow quicker, his vision hazy as he adjusted to the night sky. He hadn't felt this way since he had first gazed upon Miranda and Wilson on that operating table that felt like a lifetime ago. As he tried to move though, something felt wrong.

He was propped up against a piece of rubble, his armor and body still charred. The explosion, it seemed, had knocked him unconscious and he had ended up back in London where Harbinger's destruction still lay fresh as corpses and destroyed buildings were everywhere still.

But something was different. The Reapers were gone.

_But so are the geth. Why couldn't I save them? Why couldn't I save EDI? _

As Shepard gazed at the "perfect" night sky, the battle no longer raged neither there nor on the ground it seemed.

But as he continued to gaze up, the sight terrified him.

Massive Reapers were now crashing to Earth at an alarming rate.

Who knew where they would land.

_That was inevitable, though. Hopefully, not where all the troops are._

As he lay there though, memories began rushing back about Garrus and Tali, Miranda and Oriana, Jacob and his wife, Wrex and Eve, Javik and his comrades, James and his squad, Jack and her students, Grunt and Mordin, Samara and her daughters, Thane and Kolyat, Kaidan and Zaeed, Legion and Kasumi, Liara and Anderson and...

_Joker._

_EDI._

_Ash. _

"Where are you?" he managed to mutter under his breath as his pulse slowly began to quicken.

_I need to move. _

Shepard, with his body in unbelievably aching pain, every joint and nerve ending hitting him with excruciating pain, began getting down on his hands and knees and crawling ever so slowly, wincing and breathing heavily with every single crawl.

As he crawled, he passed the corpses of soldiers who had rushed the Citadel with him along with remains of the Reaper's servants; only body parts, armor and weapons lay scattered about amidst the rubble and destruction.

A few dozen feet away, he noticed Harbinger's shell lay on its side, its massive red light now extinguished.

_Good riddance. _

Continuing along, bit by bit, he noticed the bleeding had stopped for the most part but he could barely feel his legs as the cold and dreary London weather was getting to him.

_I need to find shelter. And help. _

Bit by bit, he crawled slowly but surely to the open space that he had charged from, looking for help.

Instead, all he saw were the remains of several Makos, smashed beyond repair.

_This may be my only chance. _

Crawling faster and in slightly more pain, Shepard crawled inside one of the more intact Makos, looking for any communications device. As he went inside its familiar surroundings, something he hadn't done for a long time, he heard a slight, faint noise of static.

"Izzz...therrrr...Shepzzzzzz...Andzzzzzzz..."

Shepard, hearing his rescue, managed to activate the nearly destroyed communications console, saying painfully, "This is Commander Shepard, aaaggh! I'm still alive and near, aggghhh! Near-remains of Harbinger-and inside Mako..." he managed to finally get out as he collapsed from the pain, darkness once again consuming him.

* * *

><p>"Shepard? Shepard, if you can here me, say something; anything!" said a familiar voice as Shepard slowly began opening his eyes to a hazy white light, noticing the grey ceiling of an Alliance cruiser med-bay.<p>

"Ughhhh, I...where am I? How did I end up on the Normandy?" as he turned his head, seeing perhaps the outline of Dr. Chakwas with her bottle of brandy that the two were going to finally enjoy but instead saw a more masculine figure.

"Shepard...this isn't the Normandy. You're on the SSV Hong Kong, one of the Alliance ships I believe you were able to recover to help in the assault if I'm not mistaken."

"Ughhh, good to see you too Hackett." muttered Shepard as he finally got up, looking down to notice a sheet covering his legs.

"Are they really gone?"

"You mean your legs? By the time we found you...well, let's just say you've escaped death twice now, Commander. The tissue was too dead for any of the doctors to save them. One has been replaced with-"

"No. I mean the Reapers" he said, turning to Hackett who was staring, hands grasped behind his back as he stared at the blank wall of the med-bay, a very tired look on his face.

"Yes. Yes, they're gone Shepard. You did a hell of a thing back there in the Crucible. I don't know how but you did it. You pulled off a damn miracle."

Hackett then turned towards Shepard and said to him softly, "I'm sure Anderson would have been proud."

"The Illusive Man...he... he was indoctrinated. He took control of me and Anderson...made me shoot Anderson...then he killed himself" said Shepard, aching still, slight tears in his eyes.

"Shepard, I'm...I'm sorry. But know this; it was not in vain. Every species in the galaxy has their continued existence to thank for because of you...and Anderson" replied Hackett proudly as he put his hand on the Commander's soldier.

"But at what cost? Trillions dead. The Mass Relays gone. All synthetic life wiped out. Every fleet stranded in the Sol System and...the Normandy..." he replied as he hung his head in shame.

"Unfortunately, you're correct Shepard. Right now, we've got reports of massive asteroids; the remains of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto currently crashing into Jupiter, Saturn and soon Mars, Earth, Venus and Mercury after they hit the asteroid belt. The firepower of all the surviving fleets is currently being prepared to repel them. All across the galaxy as well we've gotten reports of entire planets and systems being wiped out by the destruction of the Mass Relays. It seems the Batarians aren't the only ones to feel this type of pain now" said Hackett gravely as he stepped away and turned from Shepard.

"Some geth dreadnaughts also crashed into Earth and into a few quarian ships, unfortunately, after you destroyed the Reapers. Luckily, most of the quarians were able to flee to Alliance, turian, krogan, asari or salarian ships.

"Speaking of which, I've argued against this but with the Reapers gone...you're going to have to answer to the surviving admirals about how they return home now that the Relays are gone. I've tried to delay it as long as I can but...it's been a few weeks now since we found you and no one knew if you'd wake up at all, Shepard."

The two stared in silence at the floor, heads slightly hung low, a new reality facing them.

"Almost makes you wonder if it was worth it" said Shepard, somewhat remorsefully.

Hackett immediately turned to Shepard, angrily, and replied, "Was it worth it? Commander, you gave the galaxy at least a chance to rebuild and prosper. That's better than no chance at all with the Reapers around. You of all people should know that!"

"I...suppose so" he replied.

"You know so. The Reaper's had to be destroyed, Shepard. There was no other way."

"But that's just it, Hackett. The Illusive Man was right. I could have somehow controlled the Reapers or...I could have made all organic and synthetic life part of one another...I think."

"What the hell are you talking about Shepard? Whatever it is, I don't even care at this point. All that matters is that the galaxy is safe and can finally start rebuilding once we take care of a few things. You can give me the details later after you've recovered. For now, get some sleep" said Hackett as he turned from Shepard and began to leave.

"Hackett! What happened to the Normandy?" said Shepard.

Hackett closed his eyes, unable to turn to face Shepard as he waited a few seconds in painful silence. "...We lost contact with the Normandy and its crew right after the destruction of the relays. Apparently, it made one last jump through the Sol relay before its destruction."

"How? Why? Why would Joker..."

"I don't know Commander. I honestly don't know" said Hackett as he walked out of the med-bay with Shepard slumping against the cold, metallic table of the med-bay once more in shock as he stared downward, remembering everyone.

_How could they all have just left without even-_

"Shepard!" cried out Miranda as she rushed towards Shepard, hugging him and giving him a kiss on the cheek as he stood up and embraced her, coming out of his thoughts.

"I thought we'd lost you again" she said softly as the two looked at each other face to face as Shepard noticed Jack, Samara, Jacob, Wrex, Grunt, Kasumi and Zaeed surrounding him.

"I told you he'd be fine" said Jacob. "Shepard can survive dying; he can survive a few Reapers."

"Good to see you, Jacob." "Likewise, Shepard."

"Stop scaring the hell out of me all the time, jackass!" exclaimed Jack as she embraced Shepard a bit more "roughly" than Miranda. "Good to see you're alive though."

"You too, Jack" he replied warmly.

"Shepard! Thank the gods you're still alive!" exclaimed Wrex as he and Shepard embraced heartily, a smile returning to Shepard's face.

"And you look like you've had some upgrades," said Grunt as he and Wrex noticed Shepard's prosthetic leg and skin grafts.

"Shepard...I'm..." said Miranda, slowly.

"It's alright, Miranda."

"Well, look on the bright side, Shepard. At least you and me have bit more in common now" said Zaeed, dryly as everyone stared at the mercenary with slight contempt.

Shepard smirked at this snide remark. "A leg's still a bit more flashier than an eye perhaps."

"Hahaha, there's the Shepard I know" said Zaeed, smiling.

"Indeed. You seem to be recovering well, Shepard. It brings me great hope to see you are still alive" said Samara as she embraced him.

"Thank you, Samara."

"He's lucky to be. Not many can survive a full blown Reaper assault like that" said Kasumi.

"Not many did" replied Shepard. "It was only me and Anderson that made it to the Citadel. And the Illusive Man."

"What happened up there, Shepard?" asked Miranda.

"The Illusive Man...was indoctrinated, turning into a husk. He made me kill Anderson before killing himself and then...I was able to destroy the Reapers...and committed genocide in the process" he recalled, slowly and deliberately.

"Shepard, you can't blame yourself. There was no other way. The Reapers had to be stopped. Everyone knew the risks going in" said Miranda, putting her arm around him.

"That doesn't make it any more comforting" he replied.

"No, it doesn't. But that doesn't mean you didn't accomplish something truly miraculous Commander. You saved every civilization in the galaxy despite overwhelming odds" replied Samara. "That is something that you can truly be proud of."

"Thank you, Samara. I appreciate the sentiment but...too many people died in this war. Too many people who could have potentially saved their species from extinction further down the line from diseases or disaster like Mordin" as Shepard turned away towards the wall.

"I know it doesn't seem fair now after the fact, Shepard. But the truth is that no one would have had the opportunity to live further without you" said Jacob.

"No, all of us. Every single species here and across the galaxy played a vital part in the Reaper's defeat. And their sacrifices will not be forgotten. Ever" said Shepard sternly.

"Of course, Shepard. But you were the one to ultimately pull the plug on those damn machines. Not me or anyone else. Just you. That makes you a legend in everyone's book" said Grunt.

"I understand that, Grunt. I just...I don't know anymore" he said as he hung his head in his hands.

"It's alright Shepard. You've been through more in a few years than anyone else in the entire galaxy has in any lifetime, human or otherwise. Get some rest" said Samara.

"Thank you and thank you all for coming. Has anyone heard from the Normandy?"

"We tried contacting the crew a few days ago but...there was nothing. Shepard...I'm sorry" said Miranda, trying to comfort him.

"It's alright. I just wanted to know-"

"Why that jackass traitor of a pilot took off through the relay? Yeah, I think we all want to know why" said Jack.

"And you will be the first to know Shepard. Unfortunately, you're going to have to answer to the admirals soon about the whole relay situation. Don't worry though. I'll be right by your side" said Wrex as he pounded his armor.

"Thanks, Wrex. I know it must be hard for you, all of you, that you can't see your home planet...your families...your loved ones that we fought so hard for to save."

"Seeing you alive Shepard is the bit of hope that we all needed right now. Now, we can actually start working on rebuilding the Relays" said Kasumi.

"And we'll all try to be there for the hearing if we can" said Jacob.

"Those goddamn admirals owe you every medal and honor known in existence. Not to have you answer to them about how you saved their asses" chimed in Zaeed.

"No, it's alright Zaeed. The Mass Relays, one way or another, and their eventual destruction at some point, were going to come back to bite us all in the asses one day" replied Shepard.

"Whatever the case, you need to rest some more Shepard" replied Miranda.

"You're right. Thank you though. Everyone. I'm glad you all got out okay."

"And the same for you Shepard" replied Samara.

"We'll keep you posted on updates about the Normandy" said Miranda, assuringly.

"I appreciate it" he replied as the group walked out of the med-bay as Shepard fell asleep, his dreams more restless than ever.

* * *

><p>"Shepard, Shepard, wake up! Hackett's gotten through to the Normandy on the vid comm! The signal's weak but we think it's Joker!" said Miranda as she began stirring Shepard from his dreams as he sat up.<p>

"Where's the vid-comm room?" he said groggily.

"Down the stairs and in the center chamber. We need to hurry before the signal breaks up!" replied Miranda as she handed Shepard his crutches as he vaulted out of the med-bay and the two hurried down the stairs, using the guard rail as a crutch.

As the two entered the vid-comm room, as Hackett left, there was a crackling, blue, holographic Joker in the center, a noticeable smile on his face as he saw Shepard enter the room.

"Hey, Shepard...good to see you're alive" said Joker, reassuringly.

"I should say the same. What the hell happened though, Joker?" asked Shepard.

"To be honest, Shepard...I don't know. One minute I was told you had died and that the battle had been lost by, I think it may have been a salarian or somebody. The next thing I know, three Reapers were on me and I was forced to retreat to the relay to keep them from taking out the ground troops and some turian ships. Then, a huge explosion comes barreling towards us as the Relay starts breaking up; I'm forced to crash land the Normandy on some moon that...kinda reminds me of the Garden of Eden in the Bible to be honest; EDI's...and the ship's tech is fried for the most part. Luckily Garrus and Tali were able to fix the vid comm just enough to get a distress signal out."

"I'm...sorry about EDI, Joker. I know you two were..."

"Thanks, Shepard...Garrus and Vega had to stop me from killing Javik though after he found out" replied Joker with Shepard hearing his voice had the sting of anger in it.

"That's a hell of an accomplishment outmaneuvering three Reapers, though," said Shepard, changing the subject, "and there are none around where you are?"

"Not that I know of. I'm guessing you had something to do with that."

"Yeah...I did."

"Well...congratulations, Shepard. You're officially the biggest hero of all time...literally" said Joker, slightly pained.

"Yeah...I don't feel like it though" replied Shepard, with a twinge of regret.

"Shepard, don't beat yourself up over EDI. It wasn't your fault. EDI knew the risk of dying and in her last moments...she told me to live my life to the fullest and that's what I'm going to do" said Joker with a soft spoken determination.

"I...that's great Jeff."

"Thanks...Commander. Do you wanna talk to Garrus?"

"Absolutely!" replied Shepard as he saw Garrus's familiar turian face walk into frame.

"Shepard, glad to see you made it. I figured the Reapers couldn't take you down that easy. I hope you don't mind saying though the new leg suits you; no offense."

"None taken."

"But, more importantly, I guess the whole drink thing is something we're gonna have to put on hold for a while it seems. According to Tali's and Joker's calculations, we're most likely a century or more from the Sol system without a Mass Relay."

"Where the hell do you think you landed? Joker said something about the Garden of Eden."

"I think we're somewhere close to where the Reapers came from dark space at the edge of the galaxy. I'm not surprised we found such a habitable world though. This part of the galaxy has been explored so little even with relays."

"How's everyone doing?"

"Everyone seems to be doing okay at the moment. We ran out of food for a few days a couple of weeks ago but once we started picking fruit and hunting, we've managed to keep a steady food supply for now. James, Ash, and myself having been leading the pack along with Javik and Tali's been working on trying to fix the Normandy with myself and recently, Joker. It's been tough since EDI died. Especially for him."

"Joker and I discussed it."

"That's good to hear. We weren't sure if he was going to kill himself or not the first few days so Liara, Diana and Traynor were comforting him for a time. Javik didn't help things that much though."

"I heard."

"Yeah. I still think we canzzzzzz-" as the comm started going crazy and Garrus's words began breaking up.

"Garrus!"

"Shepard, before...you, Ash...talk to..." said Garrus as Shepard heard as Garrus walked off the platform, saying offscreen, "Quick...before...dark..." as the static got worse and worse.

"Shepard?" said Ashley as he saw his lover in her normal clothes, an Alliance casual wear shirt that was very worn, dirt on her face, with matching shorts and shoes that fitted her well, her hair down well past her shoulders. She had a smile on her face and he on his as she inspected him, the two locking eyes at peace with one another.

"Ash? You-" said Shepard as the feed suddenly cut off.

* * *

><p>Ash's head dropped a little as she turned towards Garrus and embraced him.<p>

"He's still alive" she said, her eyes beginning to well up.

"And more importantly, he hasn't forgotten about his love towards you" said Garrus, comforting. "If we never get off this planet, which I don't plan on, at least you two will know the other is still alive...and that you both still truly love one another."

"Thanks...Garrus. I appreciate it" said Ashley as she wiped her eyes a bit.

"Don't mention it" he replied. "You're a hell of a soldier, Ash and you've been a good friend."

"Thanks Garrus. That means a lot coming from someone like you."

"Anytime. Now, I think we should start gathering some more food before sun down, wouldn't you say? Hopefully, we can continue working on fixing the Normandy then."

"Aye, Aye, skipper" she said saluting him as the two smiled and headed out to gather some food, noticing as James and Cortez were busy chopping up meat while Chakwas, Donnelly and Adams gathered berries and plants.

"How's Loco's doing?" said James as he saw the two approaching.

"He's doing fine. A little worse for wear but up on his feet, or foot, I should say" said Garrus.

"Oh. Well, at least he's alive and the Reapers are gone with the Relays so we know he stopped them at least."

"I hope Shepard enjoys his brandy a hundred years older then as well" chimed in Chakwas. "Because I have every intention of keeping my word to him."

"I think you'll be able to keep that promise" said Ashley. "I just hope it's sooner rather than later" as she looked towards the planet that they were orbiting, noticing its majesty.


End file.
